A Football Life: Mean Joe Greene
Charles Edward Greene (born September 24, 1946), better known as "Mean" Joe Greene," is an American former football defensive tackle who played for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL) from 1969 to 1981. A recipient of two NFL Defensive Player of the Year awards, five first-team All-Pro selections, and ten Pro Bowl appearances, Greene is widely considered to be one of the greatest defensive linemen to play in the NFL. He was noted for his leadership, fierce competitiveness, and intimidating style of play for which he earned his nickname.
Born and raised in Temple, Texas, Greene attended North Texas State University-now University of North Texas-where he earned consensus All-America honors as a senior playing for the North Texas State Eagles football team. He was selected by the Steelers fourth overall in the 1969 NFL Draft and made an immediate impact with the team, as he was named the NFL's Defensive Rookie of the Year. Greene is credited with providing the foundation upon which Steelers coach Chuck Noll turned the dismal franchise into a sports dynasty. He was the centerpiece of the "Steel Curtain" defense that led Pittsburgh to four Super Bowl championships in a six-year span.
With all respect to Aaron Donald, Joe Greene is the greatest DT in the history of the game.
😂😂😂Aarón Donald isn't even top 10. Don't let the worthless stats and closeted fanboys confuse you
Reggie White has entered the chat:💪🏾
@@upstatecommunications9031 Reggie white is a defensive end, not a tackle
@@DopeyDetector You got me. I am corrected
@@upstatecommunications9031 no big deal. Reggie is the best
Never knew he had a bad arm for that long. Dude at 75% was still better than 100% of the league!
Why is Mr. Greene the Greatest Steeler of them all? Simple. His "stunt 4-3" sacrificed his individual stats for the betterment of the team. The results: 4 Super Bowl Championships in 6 seasons and made a 5 year old kid a Steelers fan for life. I'm 54 now and I will always say, "Thanks Mean Joe" for all the great moments!
No doubt. Masterful!
I just turned 57 Yesterday and Been a STEELERS Fan since age 5
Guys like Aaron Donald would never.
just watching him even if he doesent make the tackle he disrupts the play. just a hard nise defensive lineman . i wouldn't wanted to have to block him😂
I am 58 and feel the same . Thank you! Mean Joe❤ always here we go Steelers!!
A man’s man! An example for football players, grown men, and kids. The kind of guy anyone would proud to call a teammate, friend, or family.
So True!
Whole new respect for this man. Those were the hardcore days of NFL football.
This grown man has real talk
When football was football
I teared up when he got emotional, reflecting on his D-line mates passing, great man, I have nothing but the utmost respect for him...
It is abundantly clear that they had a very deep connection. When you’re the first to do something and you’re that successful, there’s an immense amount of teamwork that goes into it. But this was more than teamwork, this was true love and affection for each other.
R.I.P to the members of the Steel Curtain White Holmes and Greenwood 🖤💛🖤💛
The best ever!
And should be in the Hall
There will never again be ANYTHING in sports like the romance of the 1970s PITTSBURGH STEELERS!
It’s so funny that his grandkids had no idea how much their grand father was loved and REVERED by so many. Fans of other teams respected Mean Joe Greene, a true pleasure to watch in a game.
What a blessing growing up with players like Mean Joe Green, Sweetness, The Snake, Earl Campbell , Terry Bradshaw etc
So true. Love the Steelers… but have respect for all those players
I think I would put pastorini in there.... Houston's biggest problem is they were in the steelers division
@@michaelbaker3598true especially when they played the Raiders. Back Then their games and the NFL as a Whole was a war of attriction. It was battle of wills to see who could Impose their will on the other team. Great games, great rivalries, good times to be a football fan. This was when they played real football, unlike the game they play today, but They had to change the rules for both the players health and the fans Interest. Whether it was good or bad, I leave it up to you to decide
yessir Football before woke broke it
I remember his 1969 rookie season when the team went an anemic 1-13, he hated losing so bad that he was ejected from six games in a 14-game season. He was the first superstar of that 70s dynasty and to tell the truth the team won their first Superbowl on the strength of the defensive line anchored by Joe Greene. Let's also not forget the greatest commercial of all time, Mr. Greene do you need any help, want my coke................hey kid catch.
I loved the interview he did with the Greatest 100 with Ray Lewis and LT
That commercial is classic GOLD.
The Steelers were a fun team to watch back then. Jack Lambert, Terry Bradshaw, Lynn Swann, Franco Harris etc
That Coke commercial was my intro to Joe Greene and the Steelers. But I do drink Pepsi 😊
The Greatest Steeler of them all who played on the Greatest Football Team of all-time! 4 Super Bowls in 6 years! 10 Hall of Famers! Mean Joe!!!
When Art Rooney Jr scouted Joe in college, his scouting report was to the point: "Agile, mobile, and hostile." Joe was clearly the leader of the Steeler dynasty, but he was also a part of the Steeler family. He would spend hours with the Chief on the porch of the Rooney home on North Lincoln Avenue, smoking cigars. To those of us from Pittsburgh who were around in the days of the Steel Curtain, Mean Joe and Franco and the guys were like family to us, and they still are. They gave us their hearts, and we gave them ours.
When Football/ the NFL was great. Much less commercialized and some of the greatest, toughest guys to ever put on a uniform. When players were still role models. 70s and 80s were great
Packers fan here, but what an outstanding human being, PERIOD... You never hear anything nasty about MEAN JOE GREENE 💚 💚 except on the gridiron 🏈 .. ❤RESPECT from Gatineau Quebec Canada 🇨🇦 2024
Great doc! I wore #75 all through high school because of Greene.
I tried to get 75 but ray lewis was my idol so I chose 52
I have a HOF Jersey signed by him. Got to meet him in person that day with my son. Awesome moment also got a Vince Lombardi Trophy signed by him that day💛🖤💛🖤
Do you wanna sell that Jersey!
He still means something to me, growing up in the '70's. One mean grinding machine, and he worked for all of it to shine!
What a great man. Love his honesty with himself and how he matured through his career.
I cried so hard watching him talk about Greenwood AND the othet linemen he played with that have passed. It also sends me into thinking about all of my friends that passed way to young. And my brother o lost at 14 in 1979
We miss them! They were truly the greatest
"Mean" Joe Greene is up there with Lawrence Taylor on Mt. Rushmore. Just a solid solid beast of a man.
None Like 'em Like Him ANYMORE!!!😢
LT, Reggie, Decon Jones, Joe Green
From a Giants' fan, Mean Joe Greene is the greatest defensive lineman ever. Period! No one defined 1970's defense like Joe Greene.
I agree.
Don't forget Charles Hayley.
i was the perfect age, i wasn't even a teen yet. in 1975 i was 6, and i loved the Steelers and the Cowboys. Mean Joe Greene had u fooled tell he smiled.
Joe took care of business early. It's nice to appreciate in these times what it means to be good man. You are a legend sir!. God Bless
My ALLTIME favorite defensive player ever. FROM the first year playing FOOTBALL at 7 or the fiirst yesr that o remember him until right now2024. It will never change
God bless you Mr. Greene
Can u believe that draft? 1969 OJ Simpson and Joe Greene in top 5
Incredible!!
Pete Rozelle casually smoking while announcing the selection 13:38
He play his guts out and that the way every player should play
Most excellent documentary of the legend Joe Greene is.
It's interesting how well spoken they are compared to the players of today
That always strikes me as well.
Watching the featured tackles of the QB and RBs, I saw a man that could have put permanent debilitating hits, yet chose not to. I'd say he was a very decent human being.
It’s been said he told his defense to not, absolutely not, hit Joe Namath in the knees because of his problems. Mean, Joe told his defense to only hit Namath high
This brought back memories of not just football. But changing times in the 1970’s. For me being a kid and seeing his face on the cover of Sports Illustrated was impactful. Great example of manhood✊🏾
The greatest Steeler of all time!! He turned that organization around
If Joe selected a life other than football, he was going to succeed regardless. I truly hope you live a long and fruitful life Joe. Sacrificing yourself for others is an unbelievable trait when you could of done otherwise. Your beautiful family and this, should be your legacy. What we do when nobody is looking, that's what counts. Joe epitomizes this.
The Coke commercial came out when I was 12yrs old, had become a Die-Hard Eagles Fan, hated the cowgirls with every fiber of my being and despised the Steelers because they just kept on winning Super Bowls. After that commercial I learned something new.. Begrudging Respect. Seeing Mean Joe as a person is one of the Most Important Lessons I've Ever Learned. To Respect Your opponent. Definitely One of the Greatest Players I've ever seen. Seeing Mean Joe Greene as a Person is something I'll Treasure for as long as I'm able to.
Greatest SB commercial still!
Great player, a better person. God bless
Loved watching him as a young kid in the 70's, beastmode!!!
Easily one of the coolest dudes of all time.
Raider fan here. Only 1 Steeler I would have rather had than our guys. Mean Joe.
God it's hard to lose close good friends. Especially in combat and in life. 😢😢😢
The young kids do not know real football , because they did not witness the 70’s or the early to mid 80’s. This was the blue collar generation of football players who showed it on the field rather than the internet
So true!!!
Joe was definitely the best but if there was no Chuck Noll he would not have been a Steeler
I hit the jackpot as a kid, age 7-13 as a steeler fan during the Super Bowl years. These guy were everything to a kid that age. Can’t imagine getting any luckier than to be that age at that time in Steeler history! WOW!!
Mean Joe Green in the greatest defensive tackle in NFL's History 4x super bowl champ who truly turn Steelers franchise into the best successful franchise in the world Steel Curtain defense with Holmes White Greenwood and Green himself Blount Ham and Lambert too
I agree! “Who is Joe Greene?” They know now.
And Russell, Edwards, Wagner and Thomas. And Donnie Shell later. The greatest defense.
Don’t forget the Greatest Steeler of all time came from Texas I was a die hard Oiler fan But always gave props to the man from the Greatest State in America God bless you Joe You are the best not we’re Fr Fr
What a great episode of a football life.
I wanted to be the kid in that commercial!
The cornerstone of the dynasty.
Damn straight, best comment on here.
True team player....a man's man...all respect to this man
Awesome thank you Mr Green
Let's not forget about the Rooney's Family of the fact that they all changed their amazing philosophy to winning championship and they certainly delivered
A lesson AB learned.
For me growing up a Pittsburgh kid- the Pittsburgh Steelers were at times pathetic. We wouldnt watch them on TV then, wed rather be outside playin football. Yes the head lines of 1969 draft in next day Post gazette JOE WHO ? But almost immediatly there was a different feelin-attitude. Charles Edward Green transformed us (thank you Chuck Knoll ) The rest is our ( STEELERS ) history !! Thank you for not quitting- thank you creating a attutude. GO STEELERS !!!!
Gotta be tell ya, i been a cowboy fan 50 some years. n i love this man
Like are with Roger!!!
He went to school in Denton!
MY CHILDHOOD Á A LIVING BREATHING MAN,THANKS MR JOE GREEN
Tough as hell and made the Steelers the team everyone feared
That was beautiful
Bruh was nasty AF on the field, humble as heck in life!
Chuck Norris has a web page of Joe Green facts
I love his grandson's reaction at the 02:08 videmark when he realizes Grandpa, was "That Dude".
Jack Lambert was one of a kind, Ronny Lott, That defense was lights out one of best of all time. Why they got 4 rings in this area as defense first.
Thank you Joe for sharing your talent with us meer mortals.
from a ravens fan joe was damn good much respect
Yada ... Yada ... Yada Now for something interesting. To lift the spirits of our sainted Mother (Joe Ann Green) who was, at age 86, suffering from the effects of dementia, we were always looking for new things. Unfortunately I live 2,000 miles from my Sister and Mom. One day while walking through the mall, I had an "Ah-Ha Moment". I went into a dedicated sports-shop that specialized in hats. I selected a pink baseball hat and ordered emerald green embroidery on each side that said "MEAN JOE GREEN". A feature of this shop is they had a 72" HD big screen TV mounted in the front window for the purpose to show potential patrons what was being worked on. As I came up to the shop from having a burger, I noted a throng of people outside the shop. When I went in to collect the hat, the lady performing the work said that throng of people had been in position for 30 minutes just to see if MEAN JOE GREEN was going to arrive, but more importantly, was he actually going to wear a pink hat. Our Mother wore that hat every day for years and would point to the embroidery when anyone would ask about it. She was 5' 3" tall and weighed 87 lbs.
Wonderful story. Truly awesome. My mother passed just last year, after a long bout with dementia. Her birthday is this Thanksgiving. Celebrated many dual Thanksgiving/Birthdays with my mother. She was a huge football fan, sports fan in general. She definitely was my biggest supporter when I played youth sports throughout high school. Her favorite team was the Miami Dolphins. Even before Dan Marino arrived. She was a fan of Don Shula, and the Baltimore Colts originally. She also loved Earl Morrall who was a backup for the Colts and later the Dolphins. He actually started more games in the Dolphins undefeated season than Bob Griese. I know this as a kid, because she always antagonize my father by saying it was Earl Morral and not Johnny Unitas who carried the Colts 😂… I always she did it just to be contrary to my father. Because he was such a fan of all Baltimore teams, and the guys who made it from Baltimore. My mother wasn’t born and raised in Baltimore and had zero loyalty to any team, although she loved the Orioles and baseball in general, and she always loved the Bullets /Wizards. I digress. Thanks for sharing that story. I needed to see that. I was feeling really down thinking about my mom, and how close we were and how much I miss just hearing her voice…. even in her later years when the Dementia had taken full control. I was there with her every single day until the very end. I knew that this comment was meant for me when I read to the end and you spoke on how small your mother was in stature. However her legacy and what she created and who she was was so much bigger. My mother was 5’0 100 pounds. Small petite mother of 5 children, a dedicated wife who stayed with my father 44 years until his death. A welcoming enthusiastic grandmother of 5 grandchildren. A small southern “redbone” a quadroon with an mix of Geechee, Irish, Negro(Indigenous) and Spanish (one of her grandfathers was an EZ Hernandez, Gonzalez, Fernandez, who fought in the Spanish American wars… Perez) Betty Jean Spivey-Perez such an odd “mix” married a brown skinned brother from Baltimore, via Southern Maryland, Virginia Chesapeake Bay coastal communities ~ Big man for any era 6’3 235 in his prime and solid as Steel. Whew. Your comment took me down memory lane. Made me remember the good things, the good memories. 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾
@@mobrown1198 GOD BLESS YOU, and your Sainted Mother. Have a great Thanksgiving and Christmas Holiday
That’s a great story!!!!
Most impactful defensive player to ever live, with respect tp Reggie and Bruce.
I was a freshman at North Texas and watched Joe play on a team that was loaded with future NFL talent (Steve Ramsey, Ron Shanklin, Chuck Beatty, Glen Holloway and Cedric Hardeman), Joe was a man among boys. It’s hard to imagine just how dominating he was in the field. In those days, he was considered a very large defensive lineman at 6’4” 275, and he just pushed the entire side of the offensive line back into the backfield on every play, but could react quickly to a running back. I met Joe a couple of times and he was always just an incredibly nice guy. North Texas was able to recruit African American players in Texas largely because the other Texas teams, members of the Southwest Conference, were mostly all-white and didn’t recruit black players. Also, North Texas had a progressive legacy of recruiting African American athletes with Abner Haynes and Leon King being recruited in 1957, integrating football in Texas.
His my all time favorite Pittsburgh Steelers player of-all-time. The Guy was Incredible defense of player. The guy delivers one of the many spears to a offensive player.
Stunt 4-3.
An icon. Loved watching him play.
@@goodpainlive1 His one of Two Steelers I so want there Jerseys. The other is Jack Lambert 58!
@@megalon73I Have Them Both, Plus Franco Harris and Terry Bradshaw! My Hero's
@@antJaxStar NICE!
Legend. ICON. Both Franco and Hamm said it. Nuff said. The GREATEST Steeler of all time. Period.
Texas legend - the one and only !
You look at his college pic in his uniform , and that was well before they had weight lifting program think if they had programs like today he would be 290 if not a 300 pounder he was just great he was one of my favorites and he made coke the biggest pop drink going
Joe changed Pittsburgh and this grandpa is a living legend !
He is the best because like all the other best guys, Joe left it ALL on the field
Mean Joe will never be gone to those of us that grew up in Pittsburgh. The day he punched Len Dawson ( whom I loved) woked the sports world up. Steeler Nation was born.
HAVING A HUGE HEART ALL MY LIFE, AND AT 59 I HAVE AND STILL DO CRY ALOT. MORE FOR GOOD OR AND GREAT THINGS. PEOPLE WITH HATD STORIES THAT MAKE IT BIG AND DO GREAT THINGS IN THE SUBJECT THEY WORKED HARD TIO ACHIEVE. GREATNESS AND HUMBLE HUMANS THAT HAVE DONE GREAT THINGS. FIREMEN AND JUST SOMEONE SAVE A LIFE, OR LIVES KIDS THAT ARE BORN WITH WNYTHING That's not good orjust any tale of kids or adults making it after being in a life and death situation. I also CRY big for humans that lost someone that I is JUST so so big in THEIR lives. I CRY LISTENING TO JOE GREENE BEING CALLED MEAN JOE GREENE. I KNOW ABOUT That kinda thing where people remember you as being this really tough or mean guy that fought this person and KICKED their ass. Just when you want to be remembered as a great father and a guy with a big heart that helped others get in anyway possible. Because I am that guy. And it hurts me really really bad when people can't remember the really good in me
Beautiful story
Thanks for watching
That was one mean guy one of the best.
Love everything old school...of course i am 52 so you know....!!!!😊😊😊😊
I LIVE ONLY 25 MINUTES AWAY FROM TEMPLE, AND NEVER KNEW HE WAS FROM TEMPLE, TEXAS!! 🤦🏾♂️
Through and through.
I have to admit, the commercial completely changed my image of mean Joe. But he was always the centerpiece of the team even with Swan and Stallworth masking big plays
Perfect.
Joe greene is the best db of all time I'm your biggest fan of the 70s Alex
Great Doc, thank you Joe.
the king of Defense
That "Steel Curtain" tho 💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽 Woot-Woot!!!
As a Steelers fan we do need a 7th super bowl title
Yes we do!!!
I remember his 1969 rookie season when the team went an anemic 1-13, he hated losing so bad that he was ejected from six games in a 14-game season. He was the first superstar of that 70s dynasty and to tell the truth the team won their first Superbowl on the strength of the defensive line anchored by Joe Greene. Let's also not forget the greatest commercial of all time, Mr. Greene do you need any help, want my coke................hey kid catch.
@@TWAFHellz Yes We Do!
he was the best and most intimated defensive player of the 1970s mean joe greene and this is coming from a raiders fan, butkus had the 60s and early 70s
I agree!
You didn't have to tell us you were a Raiders fan. We could tell by the spelling and punctuation.😂
@@danacoleman4007 how dare you disrespect me, i promise you would not do that to my face because i would bitch slapp you
Great man!!
And so very, very nice
What a guy! Joe Greens.
I'm glad Joe made North Texas State famous...
He was only mean joe Greene on game day, the rest of the time it was just joe Greene.
Playing sandlot football as a kid, Joe is one of those guys that I pretended to be, even though, at 135lbs the effect just wasn't quite the same. Now, at age 60, I still go out wearing a Joe Greene jersey here in Taiwan where no one has a clue who he is. It is a bit "odd" that of the Steel Curtain line Greenwood, Holmes, White and Furness all passed relatively young. Of course, the Mike Webster story was brought to light in the movie "Concussion", but it seems a lot of former Steelers have passed young, and the ethics of the Steelers' organization in terms of medical ethics has been brought into question. It would be interesting to hear Joe's thoughts on the matter.
and to think he was a damm near an oakland raider wow, al davis really liked him
That would have been scary
@@michaelfreeland8096 no dout
There's only one Mean Joe Green
Ain’t that the truth!
RIP ANDY and Franco😔
That Coke commercial still gave me chills, till this day.
Interesting, played half his career with one arm tied behind his back... I remembered that his production had declined, but was unaware it was due to nerve damage. One cannot imagine his whole career played at full strength when the Steelers were at their best.
What a MAN
Joe was BIG, thick & fast...scary..
He's so handsome and rugged this is what ever man should look like
What a nice family
His family REALLY loves him and looks up to him...Beautiful